This invention relates to traps for killing burrowing animals such as rodents, gophers and moles.
Moles are commonly thought of in the United States as pests because of their habit of uprooting the soil or turf, pushing up earth mounds and disturbing the roots of plants, displacing bulbs and creating general havoc in crops, lawns and landscaped areas such as, for example, those on golf courses. In addition, in certain locations moles cause erosion problems. In certain agricultural areas moles interfere with mowing equipment or other machinery used for planting and harvest. In order to control moles, various methods such as applying insecticides to the soil have been used in addition to poison baits and burrow fumigants.
However, the most common method of killing moles is a trap. Numerous types of traps have been developed and are the subject of patents. One of the most common type of traps is a scissors-type trap such as is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 615,851, which is fully incorporated by reference herein. These scissors-type traps are activated by either a leaf or coil spring and have two pairs of opposing gripping arms which move in unison to kill a mole passing between the gripping arms. Such traps function to kill moles traveling in either direction through the mole""s tunnel or passageway. When set, the gripping arms straddle the mole tunnel from above. When activated, the trap kills the animal with a forceful blow.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,307,587 discloses another type of scissors-type mole trap. This trap is actuated by the animal pressing up against a trigger, thereby closing the vertically oriented jaws. This type of trap, like other types of scissor traps, is suited for capturing moles as the moles travel along a mole run or tunnel and enter between the vertically oriented jaws thereby raising a trigger mechanism so as to set off the trap and close the jaws.
One difficulty with this type of trap is that often the mole does not move enough dirt to exert an adequate upwardly directed force upon the trigger of the trap. When soil conditions are extremely wet or extremely dry, this difficulty is amplified. Thereby, the mole is able to pass through the trap undetected and avoid setting off the trap.
Often mole trap manufacturers advise consumers to build a loose pile of dirt or bump in the mole tunnel in the area where the mole trap is to be set to help ensure that the trigger of the trap is activated when a mole passes beneath the trap. Building such a bump is time consuming and the resulting structure regularly fails to achieve its purpose.
Therefore, it has been one objective of the present invention to provide a scissors-type mole trap having a choke attached to a trip pan of the trap so a mole passing beneath the trap more easily actuates the trap.
It has further been an objective of the present invention to provide an accessory device which may be removably secured to scissors-type mole traps quickly and easily.
It has further been an objective of the present invention to provide an inexpensive accessory device which may be used in connection with scissors-type mole traps.
The invention of this application which accomplishes these objectives comprises a scissors-type mole trap having a choke secured to a trip pan of the trap. The choke may be permanently secured to the trip pan or removably secured thereto. The function of the choke is to reduce the size of the mole""s tunnel thereby making it more difficult for the mole to pass therethrough without activating or setting off the trap.
Although the removable choke of the present invention may be used with numerous types of mole traps, one type of trap which has proven particularly amenable to the choke of the present invention is a scissors-type mole trap like that described in U.S. Pat. No. 615,851. This type of mole trap comprises a pair of generally U-shaped members hingedly joined together by a horizontally oriented pin defining a horizontal pivot axis. Each of the U-shaped members have a pair of spaced-apart legs joined by a generally arcuate top portion. The legs are joined by a crossbar. Each leg terminates in a jaw at the lower end of the leg. The U-shaped members are urged or biased together by a spring which encircles the horizontally oriented pin and has a pair of end portions or arms which engage the crossbars of the U-shaped members urging them toward one another.
In order to open the trap, the top portions of the generally U-shaped members are pulled together against the force of the spring thereby opening the jaws of the trap. A trip-pan is secured to one the crossbars of one of the U-shaped members. The trip-pan has a flange on one end and a free end at the opposite end. In order to set the trap in an open position, a trigger extending downwardly from one of the U-shaped members engages the flange of the trip-pan thereby holding the jaws open against the force of the spring.
The choke of the present invention is secured to the free end of the trip-pan and is located inside the mole""s tunnel. Upon a mole trying to pass through its tunnel blocked by the choke, the mole choke pushes upwardly along with the free end of the trip-pan. Consequently the flanged end of the trip-pan moves downwardly causing the trigger to disengage from the trip-pan. The spring then urges the jaws of the U-shaped members together trapping the mole between the jaws and preferably killing the mole.
The choke of the present invention is preferably made of wood but may be made of other materials such as plastic or metal. The choke may have a recess or receptacle adapted to receive the free end of the trip-pan so that the choke may be easily slid on to or off of the free end of the trip-pan by a user.
By effectively reducing the diameter or size of the mole tunnel or passageway with the choke, the mole is forced to exert upward pressure on the trip-pan thereby activating the trap and releasing the trigger. Thus, the success rate of a scissors-type mole trap such as that disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 615,851 is enhanced by the choke of the present invention.